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Tag Archives: Great Leader

This is a guest post by Matt Driscoll, who is the management and Leadership L&D Consultant at Thales.

3 Basic Styles of Leadership

Leadership training is one of the most important and challenging aspects of learning and development, and there are three basic styles of leadership that one can develop: Managerial, Visionary, and Strategic.

Managerial

Managerial leaders focus all their attention on short-term goals and daily needs. They are reactive, champions of cost-benefit analysis, and often guilty of micromanaging staff.

Visionary

Visionary leaders, on the other hand, focus their attention on the future. They create a compelling vision of their company’s future and motivate workers to strive toward that goal. However, because they are consumed with plans for the future, visionary leaders neglect the day-to-day operational necessities and current financial realities of their companies.

Strategic

The most effective leadership style is strategic. Strategic leaders develop compelling visions for the future of their companies and motivate workers to strive toward the common goals they define, while diligently maintaining the short-term financial stability of their business.

Apart from being attuned to both short and long-term needs, strategic leaders set themselves apart by focusing their attention on human capital within their organizations. In order to move the company forward, leaders must constantly develop the capabilities and competencies of their teams. Great leaders make those around them better, but they can only do so by coaching, mentoring, trusting, and ultimately giving their teams space to learn and grow through direct experience.

These are five crucial reasons why the most effective leaders often take a back seat:

1. To Develop New Leaders

Successful companies cultivate leadership at every level of the business, so rather than creating a workplace dominated by a single powerful figure, companies must encourage new leaders to rise from within the ranks. Executives must learn to recognize when employees are capable and motivated to fill leadership roles, allowing them to take charge in order to help them develop.

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“Successful companies cultivate leadership at every level of the business.”

2. To Learn

No matter how successful a team leader may be, he or she cannot be right all the time. The best leaders know their weaknesses and seek guidance whenever they are out of their depth. Whether that means following the lead of someone else within the business or seeking professional development resources elsewhere, good leaders recognize the need for constant learning.

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“Growing other leaders from the ranks isn’t just the duty of the leader, it’s an obligation.” –Warren Bennis

Anyone can be a heart-centered leader if he or she has the determination and daily commitment to practice certain core principles. The root or basis of these principles is what we call “the power of the human element.” Two things are required to tap into and unleash the human element. The first is your ability to listen or, even better, your ability to learn how to listen. The second is your own willingness to clear personal obstacles, in other words, your own story and organizational obstacles that get in the way of this deeper listening.

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“If you stand straight, do not fear a crooked shadow.” -Chinese Proverb

3 Differences of a Heart-Centered Leader

A heart-centered leader tells the truth. If you are not able to provide information when asked, you must be willing to explain why you aren’t at liberty to share that information.

A heart-centered leader does not judge or assume, but comes to understand, asking the right questions instead rushing to judgment and assumption.

Our book outlines some key guidelines for heart-centered behavior. But in order for this behavior to be authentic, it has to come from a place of emotional resonance and coherence. You have to believe in what you are doing. It has to resonate with you. Ultimately, a heart-centered leader leads from principles, values, and virtues.

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“Since in order to speak, one must first listen, learn to speak by listening.” -Rumi

Encouraging Leaders to Have an Open Mind

I ask them to reflect on a time in their career when being open-minded paid big dividends and why. I also ask them to tell me of a time when they were not open-minded and what happened. I find that if people can reflect on their own experiences, they can piece together the benefits of being open-minded much faster than me pointing out the rewards of being open-minded.

Another approach is to ask leaders to imagine how differently they would communicate with an associate if grounded in this key principle: people have positive intentions. It requires revising certain ways of thinking, such as taking sides in a conflict, and replacing them with healthier habits of mind — observing the perspective of both sides. It involves identifying and taking responsibility for your own mental tendencies, including an inclination to stereotypes and making snap judgments about what people “should” do. It also means flexing your empathetic muscle. As a result, you gain a greater understanding of the causes of atypical behavior and problems that result from that behavior, as well as insight into the best solution.

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“Wisdom is knowing what to do next; virtue is doing it.” -David Starr Jordan

Differentiate YOU

That amazing array of honey products got me thinking about personal brand. We are all at a fair of sorts. Whether the marketplace or in your social circles, there are many others competing for time, for opportunity. How do YOU differentiate YOU?

Most of us don’t think about a conscious plan for standing out. We have learned to blend in. But great leaders stand out. Work that is extraordinary captures our attention. If you fail to stand out, you will be passed over at promotion time. Overlooked in the marketplace. Ignored for the most important opportunities.

Some work stands out so much that it generates that viral buzz that the media savors. If it makes you uncomfortable just thinking about that type of attention, I have good news. It often is tiny differences that make the big difference. Success often happens at the margin. If your work is only slightly better, you have an enormous advantage. Often we look with interest at the shocking or spectacular, but settle for purchasing or consuming something closer to our version of normal. The choice we make, however, is usually one that is just ahead of the competition.

Are you a leader? Leaders do not blend in. They don’t hide their unique qualities.

This is a guest post by Steve Brown. Steve’s writing on various sites focuses on business related topics. Also he writes for the site The Gap Partnership. Apart from his writing, he loves to swim and hike whenever he gets time.

There’s a lot more to being a good leader than just being smart. People who have studied great leaders have identified certain traits that are common to these people, whether they are in business, politics, or any other field. Some of these same leadership traits can also be useful in a negotiation. Here are some of the ways in which wise leadership and wise negotiation converge.

A sense of fairness

A strong leader always treats people fairly, including employees, customers, and everyone else. If employees feel that they are being treated unfairly, it can create resentment and undermine the leadership. Ensuring that everyone is treated honestly and fairly engenders a greater sense of respect and loyalty; thus, this is an important trait of wise leaders.

This same sense of fairness is beneficial in negotiations as well. It can help you to establish trust during the process so that you can work with the other person to achieve an outcome that is fair to all parties.

Look for mutual benefit

Great leaders look for solutions that can satisfy everyone’s interests not just their own. By ensuring that the needs of customers, employees, shareholders, and others are considered, it creates an environment where everyone can be pleased with the decisions and the results. In a negotiation, looking for this mutual benefit can change the dynamic from an adversarial one to a situation where the parties are looking for shared solutions that benefit both of them. This is how you can achieve a win-win result that both parties are happy with.

Emotional detachment

Sometimes making a good decision means detaching the emotions so that you can weigh your options dispassionately and logically. Good leaders know how to do this so that they can make wise decisions. In negotiation, you also need to avoid becoming overly attached to a particular plan or outcome. Instead, keep an open mind and be willing to consider suggestions and alternatives. Bringing too many emotions into the process can cloud the issues and lead to poor decisions.